Special thanks to Judith Butler and Harding University Theatre
Femme Power
καλώς ήρθατε! (kalos irθes, kalos irθate -- “well you came”; corresponds to English welcome).
Today, we will explore Sophocles' Antigone, a representation of feminist and sexual agency that is fraught with risk. Antigone shows how the constraints of normative kinship unfairly decide what will and will not be a livable life. To examine themes of femme power and justice, we'll watch it performed as a play (as intended), read Judith Butler's Antigone's Claim, and put it in conversation with Barbie (2023) (odd angled text).
Overview
Session #3: Barbie, Odd Angled Texts
Session #1: Welcome
In our opening session, we will watch Harding University Theatre's 2022 production of Antigone
FFW (5 min): How do the geography, climate, and culture of one’s homeland affect his / her / their view of the larger world? How might the geography of Greece have affected the ancient Greek worldview? Do you see any evidence of this perspective within Antigone?
Agenda
Special thanks to Kerry Lefebvre and Centre for the Humanities, University Wisconsin-Madison
Use textual support from the play as the basis for your analysis:
What themes or images are prominent in this choral ode? How do these themes or images relate to the play as a whole?
What information, if any, does the chorus provide that could be important for understanding the play?
What is Antigone’s dilemma at the beginning of the play? What are her duties to her family (her oikos), and what are her duties to her city (the polis)?
Why does the fact that Creon is Antigone’s uncle (and last living male guardian) complicate her dilemma?
In what terms does Antigone understand her ‘crime’? Why does she say that she will “be a criminal—but a religious one”?
How do you understand femme power as represented by Antigone and Ismene?
Bracket & Share
Session #2: Judith Butler, Antigone's Claim
Loop Writing
Loop writing is a sequence of interconnected focused free writes that aim to approach a single topic or inquiry from a range of different angles. This practice is useful when working towards a longer, more “polished” piece of writing because of the way students are pushed to generate a lot of “raw materials” that can later be revised.
The WHY: Loop writing is also useful as a close reading (writing to read) practice because of the way it asks students to write in response to someone else’s language and engage with it on different levels. The sequence of the focused free writes is particularly important with loop writing—there needs to be a progression from brainstorming => storytelling/experiential => expository and critical writing.
Agenda
Loop Writing for Antigone's Claim
First thoughts (2 min): write down your immediate responses or reactions to the text.
Stories & Portraits (5 min): tell the story of a situation or experience that is somehow connected to the topic of the text. Include as many details and description as possible in your story or portrait. The goal is to use one’s own experience (and associations) to find a way in to a topic.
Dialogue with the author (5 min): Imagine you are able to have a real conversation with the author—write that dialogue. What questions would you ask? How do you imagine the writer would respond? These dialogues can even be performed as short plays.
Vary the audience (5 min): write to explain this text to your younger sibling / cousin or elder in your family. Be as clear and concrete as possible.
Record your own reading process (10 min): Tell the story of your reading of the text. This might be literal (what did you do in order to get through the text?), or you might keep track of your thoughts as they shift and change during your reading process. This prompt is also a moment where you use visual literacies to create maps of what happened as you read, using images and metaphors to convey the sensations experienced (i.e. a road map with potholes and construction). This loop is often assigned outside of class as homework, but can be done during a workshop session if given at least 10 minutes.
Imagining Key Questions (5 min): What question is this text answering? What problem does it address? What’s at stake for the writer? For the reader? What the text is trying to accomplish and why?
Large group share out
Session #3: Barbie (2023)
Agenda
Odd Angled Texts
FFW (5 min): Is the new Barbie film feminist?
FFW (2 min): What question is this text answering? What problem is it addressing?
Last things first (5 min): starting from the conclusion, what does the text say?
Bracket & Share
Session #4: Banksy
What do you see?
FFW (5 min, 10 sentences minimum): What words help to describe this artwork? What do you think the artist wanted to communicate? What do you see in the artwork that makes you say that? What can the image tell you about the artist? What do you see that makes you say that?
FFW (5 min, 10 sentences minimum): What do you imagine could have happened moments prior to [or after] the scene shown here? What in the artwork made you say that? What does this remind you of? Explain your response.
FFW (5 min, 10 sentences minimum): What feeling or mood do you get from this artwork? What about it makes you say that? What is the setting for the artwork– the time and place? What makes you think that?
Bracket & Share: what themes / ideas do we notice from each other's share out?